Portland pulls away from Bradley in 74-53 win

LAS VEGAS -- Ryan Nicholas scored 18 points to lead University of Portland to a 74-53 victory over Bradley in the Holiday Hoops Classic on Friday night.

Nicholas got help from Thomas van der Mars and Alec Wintering, who contributed 15 points apiece for Portland (7-4), which managed to pull away late in the second half with a 13-4 run and continued to pad the lead down the final stretch. The Pilots hit 45 percent from the field and went 19 of 20 from the foul line.

Bradley (5-6) kept the score close most of the game, twice narrowing the gap to six points in the second half -- once on a Walt Lemon Jr. dunk and again on a pair of Lemon free throws that made it 49-43. But the push stalled and the Pilots pulled steadily away.